Siege of Fayum (1799)

The Siege of Fayum (early January 1799) was a battle of the Egyptian Campaign of the French Revolutionary Wars. A French army of 978 troops under General Jean-Baptiste Bessieres marched south from Cairo and stormed the Egyptian city of Fayum, defended by 2,124 Mamelukes under Humayun Saleh. The city, the Mamelukes' power base following the fall of Cairo, fell with 295 French losses, and the French conquered the Fayum Oasis. This was a major blow to the Mamelukes, who were now forced to retreat further into Egypt.